Cold Hands
by Beyond The Horizon
Summary: After waiting for Harry in Hogsmeade, Ron and Hermione decide to go for a walk through Hogsmeade to pass the time. Ron/Hermione. Fluffy one-shot, T for British swearing.


"Bloody hell, Hermione." Ron mumbled as he blew into his hands, rubbing them together. "Harry's not going to be here on time. He's always an hour late." A winter chill swept past the two teenagers. Hermione was dressed in black coat with a scarf with Gryffindor's signature colours wrapped securely around her neck. She adjusted her burgundy earmuffs and gave Ron a look. "What? It's freezing out here, Hermione. I think Harry would want us to wait for him inside The Three Broomsticks. I can't imagine that he'd fancy having his two friends turning into human popsicles."

"Harry wanted us to wait for him outside. I think we should do just that. Besides, you're dressed warmly enough to endure the weather." Hermione retorted.

"Come on, just for a second. I don't want my toes freezing off. We'll go inside to warm up and come right back out." Ron pleaded. He knew that if Harry had been in place of Hermione, the two of them would've agreed to wait inside within a couple of seconds of the suggestion being made. Not Hermione, she firmly believed that when Harry said 'wait outside', he literally meant unconditionally 'wait outside'.

"We're not going inside." She said. Her brown eyes moved in the direction of the clock. Casting a quick glance to Ron, she sighed. "If you want, we can have a quick walk around Hogsmeade if it'll take your mind off of waiting." Although she hated the idea of leaving her waiting spot, she felt bad that she was making Ron stand here with her. She was surprised that he had even agreed to wait with her. She knew how he couldn't take the cold and she wasn't helping the situation. It was sweet of him to do something like that for her and she felt that she should at least give him an alternative to standing in the snow.

Ron looked back at her and groaned. While he really wanted to go inside, he was debating the idea of the walk. If they went for a walk, at least they'd be able to move their feet and potentially get warmer. Anything was better than sitting out here. The only reason he was out here was because he hated the idea of leaving Hermione alone. While Hogsmeade was a pretty safe area, there was no guarantee that a Slytherin might come around and make trouble for her. He burrowed his hands further into his coat pockets. "Sod it, let's go." They both started to walk down the main street, gazing into the shops and pubs that advertised their goods in the windows. Ron's attention was focused on Honeydukes and as if on cue, his stomach growled. "Hermione, could we just…"

A small smile appeared on her face for perhaps a fraction of a second before disappearing. "Fine, go ahead. We've already left our meeting point. You might as well go to Honeydukes as well." Crossing her arms, she followed Ron inside. While she didn't want to admit it, she was relieved that Ron had made that suggestion. She had her eye on the Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans and she knew that she wouldn't hear the end of it if she told Ron she was going inside. As Ron disappeared into the back, Hermione made her way to the side shelves. The store was packed with wizards and witches of all ages. She caught sight of Ginny Weasley with Dean Thomas whispering to each other. Hermione moved her gaze back towards the candy. _We better leave before Ron catches sight of Ginny and Dean._ She thought to herself. Grabbing the nearest box of the delicious beans, she pushed through the crowd towards the cahier. A tug on her coat sleeve made her jump in surprise.

"Hermione! There you are! I thought I lost you." Ron said, smiling. He had his arms full of all sorts of candy. "You better watch out. Fred and George told me that a first-year last year was trampled while trying to buy a Chocolate Frog. Poor kid…" He said, shaking his head.

"Somehow I think someone would've noticed a first year falling to the floor." Hermione said with a grin. Ron shrugged as a witch motioned for the next customer in line to check out. They both moved at the same time towards the register. Ron noticed what Hermione was doing and tried to step down while Hermione had similar thoughts. Both were urging the other one to go ahead and take the place in front of the cahier. "We'll pay together." Hermione finally said. Ron nodded and to Hermione's amusement, noticed that his ears had gone bright red. She could only imagine that the heat on her cheeks was producing a similar effect. As they put all their candy down, the witch gave them their total. Hermione reached into her purse and was about to put down her seven sickles when Ron handed five gold galleons to witch, paying for the entire purchase. "Ron, you don't have to-"She was cut off as Ron received his change and pulled her out of the store. As they stumbled into the snow, Ron took a deep, exaggerated breath.

"Blimey, it was a madhouse in there." He said. Hermione glanced down at her box of beans.

"Take it." She said, extending her hand out. "You paid for them."

Ron gave her a confused glance and gently pushed her hand back. "No thanks, I'm set." He motioned towards his haul of purchases.

"You didn't have to buy them for me. At least take the money I was going to use." She fished out her seven sickles and offered it to him. Again, he shook his head and refused to take her money. "Ron, I'm completely serious. Take the sickles. Five galleons is a lot of money and I'm not going to let you use your own money on me."

"Hermione, I'm not taking your money and I'm definitely not taking the Bertie Bott's back." He said firmly.

"Ronald Weasley!" Hermione exclaimed. Truth be told, she was flattered that Ron had paid for her candy but she was taught at a young age that she should manage her own food and purchases. Gifts were meant only for special occasions and she didn't feel comfortable accepting Ron's purchase.

Ron paled and held in hands up in defense. "Listen, you can share them with me. We'll be even, okay?" He said. Hermione opened her mouth to refuse but figured that the argument was getting a little ridiculous and if he had half the candy, she would be paying him back a little bit. Hermione nodded in response. Ron brought his arm up and ruffled the back of his hair. "You don't know how scary it is when you do that. You sound almost exactly like mum." Hermione lightly punched him in the arm.

"That's not a very flattering thing to say to a girl." Hermione remarked. As they continued down the road, Ron opened up his Pumpkin Pasty and Hermione feebly opened her beans. Ron practically devoured his in seconds while Hermione tried to carefully pick out an appropriate bean. She lifted one out that was a shade of mocha. "Do you think this one's safe?" she asked Ron, a cautious tone in her voice.

"Hermione, you're doing it wrong. You simply pick out the first one you see." As if to demonstrate, he reached in without looking and pulled out a violet bean. He held it up to Hermione's eye level, earning a sceptical look from the Gryffindor girl. "The more time you spend worrying about whether or not you got a disgusting flavour, the higher chance you have of picking a bad one." Seeing Hermione raise an eyebrow, the red haired boy sigh and pat her shoulder. "It's not just me talking, Hermione. It's a scientific fact." He put the bean in his mouth, a smile forming on his face.

"Or it's something that your brothers told you and you'll realize how wrong you are in three, two and one…" Ron spat out the bean and his expression turned into one of true disgust. Hermione couldn't contain her laugh as Ron quickly fished around in his bag for some pumpkin juice. He found a small bottle with only a sip left over and drank it rapidly. "So Mr. Know-It-All, what flavour was it?"

"Prunes." Ron answered weakly. "Out of all the flavours in the world, why did it have to be prunes?" Hermione put her mocha bean in her mouth and a knowing grin appeared on her face.

"Hmm…milk chocolate. It seems as though being cautious really pays off in the end." Hermione said. Ron flushed and murmured something about his brothers. Hermione offered him another and with a cringe, he declined. "Suit yourself." Hermione said, eating another. _Bubble gum…_ "Look, we're at the Shrieking Shack." She motioned towards the house that lay beyond the wooden fence.

Ron shivered although it wasn't apparent whether it was from the cold or the memories that came with the old house. "Harry was barking mad dragging us into the house. I'll never forgive him for that."

Hermione leaned against the fence and gazed at the building. "With Harry, it's hard to believe that there will ever be such thing as an 'average' school year." Hermione said. She closed her eyes and shook her head slightly. "It's funny to think that the whole incident with Sirius and Scabbers, I mean Pettigrew, happened in third year. Being Harry's friend certainly keeps you on your toes." Hermione opened her eyes and realized that Ron had taken a spot beside her, mimicking her position. He was nodding thoughtfully at her words. Hermione blushed at Ron's close proximity and although it felt slightly strange, she decided that she liked the feeling.

"I don't know how the bloke does it. He's played an enchanted chess game, seen You Know Who with his own two eyes, ridden a hippogriff, uncovered the Chamber of Secrets and proved that Lupin was a werewolf, and I haven't even skimmed the surface. By the time he's finished at Hogwarts, there won't be any more secrets left in the castle to uncover." Ron exhaled.

"We've had a lot of excitement in our lives, that's for sure." Hermione agreed. "I'm sure we'll have more adventures. We owe a lot of Harry. We've gained so much experience from him and I really value his friendship. "

"What about my friendship?" Ron asked, furrowing his brows.

Hermione laughed and turned to face him, her head leaning on her right hand. "What about it?"

"Well you're going on about Harry, what about me? How did I affect your life?" Ron persisted. If Hermione hadn't known better, she could've sworn that Ron was jealous.

"You've definitely made my life more…enjoyable." She finally answered. _Was he fishing for compliments?_ "I can't say that I appreciate you taking my Defense Against the Dark Arts homework though."

"I only do that because you're the smartest girl I know." Ron defended. "How else am I supposed to get by the constant homework checks?"

"You could always actually **do** your homework." Hermione suggested. Ron crinkled his nose.

"Why would I do that?" Ron asked, giving Hermione a slight nudge. "I have you." Hermione knew that he meant it in a friendship way but that didn't stop her heart from fluttering. "Oh bloody hell." He cursed as he brought his hands to his face. He blew into his hands and rubbed them together. "Why is it so cold outside? These mittens aren't helping at all."

Hermione rolled her eyes; she should have expected a complaint from him. He could only go on for so long without making one. "Honestly Ronald, you're being such a baby. I already told you, it's not that cold out. My hands are just fine." She held up her red tinted woolly mittens to show him.

"Yeah, but yours are bulkier. Therefore, they're keeping the heat in better. Not to mention, you don't have a small hole in your right mitten." Ron complained.

"Oh for…" Hermione took his hands into her own. "There, does that help?" Ron turned bright red and stared at their hands.

"Yeah…sort of." He said, his voice taking a quieter tone than before. Hermione moved her hands against his, trying to cause some friction. It didn't occur to her how nervous Ron had suddenly become. "You could come a little closer if you want. It's difficult to do this when you're standing far away…only if you want to, though." He said quickly.

"I think you're right." She shuffled a little closer and looked up at him, questionly. "Better?" Ron nodded and smiled at the brunette. Hermione met his eyes and felt a blush rise to her cheeks. Although she offered her hands out of concern from her friend, there was always that small part of her that liked Ron's attention. Their bodies were only a few inches away from each other, both shivering because of the morbid weather. Ron's nervous mannerisms seemed to reduce in frequency and he gained enough confidence to speak again.

"Thanks, Hermione." He said, his face still red. "I'm really glad that you asked if I wanted to go for a walk."

Hermione's eyes suddenly widened in realization. "Oh no. We were supposed to meet Harry! How long have we been gone?"

Ron cursed under his breath, upset that the moment was ruined and the fact that they had pretty much ditched Harry. "We better get going." Ron started to pull away when he felt Hermione's hands tug him back. He turned his head to question her but before he could say anything, Hermione gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. She pulled back, blushing madly.

"Thanks for everything, Ron. I had a great time." She said before she grabbed his hand and tugged him back in the direction back towards Hogsmeade. Ron followed in a sluggish fashion, his mind continuously replaying the kiss in his mind. After a few moments of light running, they caught sight of Harry waiting outside The Three Broomsticks. The raven haired boy raised an eyebrow at his two friends.

"Where have you two been? I've been waiting for at least half hour."

"I'm sorry, Harry. We left to wander Hogsmeade for just a few moments and I guess we lost track of the time." Hermione apologized. Harry shrugged and flashed a grin.

"No harm done, I guess. It was my fault for being late. Let's go inside, it's bloody freezing out here." As Hermione entered the bar, Harry turned towards his best friend. Harry's jade eyes caught sight of Ron's face that still displayed a large amount of colour. "Ron, are you alright?"

Ron nodded. "Oh yeah, I'm fine. Don't worry about me." Harry accepted Ron's answer as a suitable reply and followed Hermione inside. Ron stood outside for a moment. He glanced up at the pale sky. His face was still warm from the kiss. At least now he couldn't complain about being cold…


End file.
